1. Field of the Invention
This invention is in the field of security documents. Particularly, this invention relates to security documents that are made by printing on a print media, such as on paper or card stock. Generally, this invention also relates to thermal inkjet printing used to create such security documents, although the invention is not so limited. More particularly, this invention relates to security documents, such as lottery tickets, to secure identification documents, and to secure communication documents, for example. A printing method for producing such security documents may employ thermal inkjet printing. The invention relates also to a print media for use in a printer, which may be of thermal inkjet type. Alternatively, a printing method for such a security document may employ a form of printing other than thermal inkjet printing. In both cases, printers of the types commonly available with home and office computer systems are employed. The invention also relates to a thermal inkjet printing apparatus which is capable of practicing the method and of producing security documents embodying this invention.
2. Related Technology
Conventional security documents, such as lottery tickets, for example, are commonly produced using a security printing method requiring several printers and several printing steps. For example, one form of security document involves use of a print media, such as a paper or light card stock. On this paper or light card stock printing media may be first conventionally printed a first contextual printing xe2x80x9cfieldxe2x80x9d of monochrome or multicolor printing. This first field may be printed using a pigment or die penetrant type of ink. However, some conventional security documents will omit this first printing field of contextual information. That is, this first printing xe2x80x9cfieldxe2x80x9d usually contains contextual information, such as characters and images, for identifying the nature of the security document. This first printing xe2x80x9cfieldxe2x80x9d may include information concerning the fact that the document is a lottery ticket, or a transmittal document for a bank xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d number, for example. In such a use, the first printing field would perhaps contain information identifying the State issuing the lottery ticket, the name and logo of the game being played, perhaps information about how the game is played, information about a valid way to reveal the lottery numbers (such as by the user scratching only a portion of a top opaque xe2x80x9cfieldxe2x80x9d off the ticket), and other such information. Alternatively, if the document is a bank xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d number transmittal document, then the first printing field would perhaps contain the bank""s name, and the information about how the recipient is to reveal the bank xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d number. This first printing field will usually designate and indicate an area (i.e., a xe2x80x9csecure areaxe2x80x9d) within which the lottery numbers, bank xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d number, etc., is to be found. Security documents of this conventional type are easily recognized as such.
The recipient of such a bank xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d number transmittal document, for example, would be assured that the document is secure, because the xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d number is obscured by a top xe2x80x9cfieldxe2x80x9d of opaque coating. Only after the recipient removes this obscurant coating is the PIN number visible. Alternatively, some security documents would omit this first printing field either because it is not necessary, or because it may in fact be undesirable. For example, it may be desired to keep confidential the nature of the document, and its source of origin. Nevertheless, conventional security documents with a xe2x80x9cscratch offxe2x80x9d area are easily recognized.
Although security documents may be of virtually any size and shape, generally, such conventional security documents are individually small, and are printed many at a time in large sheets on a printing press which deposits the characters and graphic images for the first printing field on the entire sheet at once. The sheets may be pre-scored or pre-perforated to facilitate their separation later into a plurality of relatively small lottery tickets, or into card-sized security documents, for example. The printing media may be in the form of an elongate xe2x80x9ctapexe2x80x9d or xe2x80x9cribbonxe2x80x9d of plural pre-scored or perforated ticket portions, or of plural security coupons or cards, that are at this stage secured together. In this latter case, the print media is generally handled in the form of a roll rather than as sheets. In the event that the first printing field involves plural colors, then the first multi-color printing press or a series of monochrome presses (i.e., one for each of the various colors) much achieve proper registration and congruence of the various characters and images that make up the first printing field. This problem of achieving acceptable congruence or registration within a first and subsequent printing fields can result in considerable printing labor and scrap from trial-and-error set up attempts.
Conventionally, the sheets or ribbons or rolls of print media with the first printing field applied then have a coating applied, which is generally transparent to allow the first printing field to be viewed through the coating. This coating may have plural layers, with a lower layer (i.e., closer to the substrate) that substantially prevents penetration of subsequent pigment printing to the print media. On this substantially impenetrable layer, may be applied an upper layer (i.e., usually a top-most layer furthest away from the substrate) to which subsequent pigment printing will adhere with a satisfactory degree of tenacity. This coating step may require one or more coating machines through which the sheets, ribbons, or rolls of lottery tickets or security documents are run.
Next, the individual lottery numbers or bank xe2x80x9cPINxe2x80x9d numbers are printed on the individual tickets, security cards, or security coupons. This printing step is carried out with a printing press that call individually access each ticket, card, or coupon. That is, the printing press must be able to print different information, numbers, or characters in the secure area of each of the several tickets, cards, or coupons of a sheet. In the case of a print media that is an elongate strip fed from a roll, then the printing operation must be able to index the applied information in the secure field according to a determined sequence of under control of an information generator or source. For example, a computer system may be supplying PIN numbers to be printed in particular secure fields of identified security cards for a bank. Again, a problem arises of achieving satisfactory registration or congruence of the printing performed at this stage with the previous first printing field. That is, the secure information must be placed within the designated secure area (i.e., as was explained above) where the user of the document expects to find the confidential information or the winning lottery numbers.
Finally, an opaque, frangible printing layer is applied over at least the designated secure area of the security document in order to obscure the lottery numbers, PIN number, or other confidential information. Again, this final printing step may require more than one layer and more than one printing press and operation for its completion. That is, the opaque layer may include a layer of loosely bonded particulate material, such as granular latex in a bonding carrier. This first layer is applied over the secure area, and is then itself perhaps coated with one or more subsequent layers to better secure the opaque layer and to further promote security of the confidential information by making the opaque later somewhat difficult to remove. This removal difficulty for the opaque layer, for example, insures that removal of the opaque layer causes some abrasion of the underlying coatings and substrate, so that the lottery numbers cannot be changed without evidence of this fact. Also, the overlying layers will resist xe2x80x9cwashingxe2x80x9d of the document, so that an attempt to wash off the secure lottery numbers, for example, and to replace these with xe2x80x9cwinningxe2x80x9d numbers, would necessarily damage the underlying layers and/or substrate. Such factors are used in combination to discourage and to reveal fraud in lottery and other games.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,705 (the ""705 patent), issued May 15, 1990, to George R. Hill. This ""705 patent appears to teach a method of printing layers having substantially exact registration. Although this ""705 patent is addressed to the printing problems arising in the electronics industry (i.e., in which circuit elements and traces are made by printing), the patent mentions the application of the invention to the security document printing industry.
However, it is apparent in view of the above that the conventional technology for producing security documents with a xe2x80x9cscratch offxe2x80x9d or removable portion, has many detriments. First of all, many printing steps are required, and expensive printing equipment is necessary to carry out these printing steps. Further, the nature of the conventional xe2x80x9cscratch offxe2x80x9d security documents is apparent, thus compromising their security. Further, the production of satisfactory security documents has not heretofore been possible for the home office, small business or other user who wishes to produce the occasional security document without the need to make access to a large and often expensive commercial printing concern.
To the present time, it is believed that a print media, printing method, and printing apparatus are not available which would allow security documents to be produced on home and office printers of the type generally available with small computer systems. That is, prior to this invention, there was no way to produce a security document utilizing a commonly available inkjet printer.
In view of the deficiencies of the related technology, an object for this invention is to reduce or overcome one or more of these deficiencies.
Accordingly, the present invention provides an inkjet printer, the inkjet printer being especially configured for printing security documents, the inkjet printer comprising: a base carrying a printer housing, the printer housing defining a printing path, a print media feed mechanism controllably moving print media through the printer housing along the printing path, a traverse mechanism having a carriage carrying a pair of inkjet print cartridges for movement together generally transversely to the printing path, each of the pair of inkjet print cartridges including: a cartridge body defining a printing fluid chamber, and a printing fluid delivery assembly; a print head providing a plurality of fine dimension print orifices, the print head receiving printing fluid from the printing fluid chamber via the printing fluid delivery assembly and controllably ejecting this printing fluid from the fine dimension printing orifices onto the print media, a first of the inkjet print cartridges carrying as the printing fluid and discharging onto the print media a dye penetrant type ink, which dye penetrant type ink when discharged onto the print media penetrates into the print media to form characters or images of a secure permanent message; and a second of the inkjet print cartridges carrying as the printing fluid and discharging onto the print media an opaque pigment type ink, which opaque pigment type ink when discharged onto the print media does not substantially penetrate into the print media, but forms an opaque over coating obscuring the secure permanent message.
According to another aspect, this invention provides an inkjet printer, print media, and inkjet print cartridge combination which are especially combined to enable printing security documents, which security documents include the print media, a secure permanent message imbedded into the print media, and an apparent but not permanent message or printed area of opaque ink over coating and hiding the secure permanent message, the printer, media, and inkjet cartridge combination comprising: a) the printer including: a base carrying a printer housing defining a printing path, a print media feed mechanism controllably moving print media through the printer housing along the printing path, a traverse mechanism having a carriage for carrying at least a pair of inkjet print cartridges for movement together generally transversely to the printing path, b) a pair of inkjet print cartridges, each of the pair of inkjet print cartridge including: a cartridge body defining a printing fluid chamber, a printing fluid delivery assembly; a print head providing a plurality of fine dimension print orifices, the print head receiving printing fluid from the printing fluid chamber via the printing fluid delivery assembly and controllably ejecting this printing fluid onto the printing media; c) a first of the pair of inkjet print cartridges carrying as the printing fluid and discharging onto the print media a dye penetrant type ink, which dye penetrant type ink penetrates into the print media to form characters or images of the secure permanent message; and d) a second of the pair of inkjet print cartridges carrying as the printing fluid and discharging onto the print media an opaque pigment type ink, which opaque pigment type ink does not substantially penetrate into the print media, but forms an opaque over coating obscuring the secure message; e) the print media comprising: a substrate; a coating layer of material disposed upon the substrate, the coating layer of material having an upper surface, and being penetrable by dye penetrant type ink to allow the dye penetrant type ink to enter into and through the coating layer to reach the substrate, and the coating later of material not allowing pigment type ink to penetrate the upper surface; whereby pigment type ink printed upon the upper surface is tenuous thereon, and may be removed by use of mild abrasion so as to reveal the secure message printed with dye penetrant ink.
Still another aspect of the present invention provides a method of especially configuring an inkjet printer for printing, security documents, the method comprising steps of:
a) providing the inkjet printer with: a base carrying a printer housing, the printer housing defining a printing path, a print media feed mechanism controllably moving print media through the printer housing along the printing path, a traverse mechanism having a carriage carrying a pair of inkjet print cartridges for movement together generally transversely to the printing path;
b) providing each of the pair of inkjet print cartridges with: a cartridge body defining a printing fluid chamber, and a printing fluid delivery assembly; a printed providing a plurality of fine dimension print orifices, the print head receiving printing fluid from the printing fluid chamber via the printing fluid delivery assembly and controllably ejecting this printing fluid from the fine dimension printing orifices onto the print media;
c) providing a first of the inkjet print cartridges as the printing fluid with a dye penetrant type ink, and when the dye penetrant type ink is discharged onto the print media penetrating the dye penetrant type ink into the print media to form characters or images of a secure permanent message; and
d) providing a second of the inkjet print cartridges as the printing fluid with an opaque pigment type ink, and when the opaque pigment type ink is discharged onto the print media not substantially allowing the pigment type ink to penetrate into the print media, but forming an opaque over coating obscuring the secure permanent message, and allowing the opaque over coating of pigment type ink to bond with the print media only with a selected degree of tenacity; whereby the opaque pigment type ink may be removed from the print media using mild abrasion to reveal the secure message.
Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the pertinent arts from a consideration of the following detailed description of a single preferred exemplary embodiment of the invention, when taken in conjunction with the appended drawing figures, which will first be described briefly.